The people who run a St. Paul cafe say they had “a surreal and pretty awful night watching our beloved business on fire.”

Groundswell is on the first floor of a two-story building at Thomas and Hamline avenues in the Midway area with apartments above.

The St. Paul fire department was dispatched about 10:15 p.m. Wednesday for a report of an apartment fire. A 911 caller said the building was full of smoke and all the occupants had escaped, according to Deputy Fire Chief Jamie Smith.

Firefighters discovered a basement fire and extinguished it. They safely removed a cat from an apartment. Five adults were displaced by the fire, and are staying with family and friends, Smith said.

“Everyone is safe, and that is what matters most,” said an early Thursday post on Groundswell’s Facebook page.

The fire department is investigating the fire’s cause.

“Really sad to say we won’t be able to serve you your latte and scone tomorrow,” Groundswell’s post said. “We will keep you posted as we learn more.”

Groundswell has had its share of successes and calamities over the years, and the business credits neighbors and friends for their support.

Groundswell got its start in December 2009, with “the resurrection project of the coffeeshop at 1342 Thomas Ave.,” the business’ website says. “… We scraped together as much money as we could, asked a bunch of our friends to volunteer their time at the espresso machine, and opened Groundswell Coffee.”

The coffeeshop had to close for nearly three months in 2011 when a ceiling collapsed.

Related Articles

George Floyd: Minneapolis, St. Paul events mark his death, community response

Burnsville to break ground on nearly $100M Police City Hall renovation project

Truck driver tells trooper he was distracted by map before Washington County fatal crash

Woodbury officials seek info on rug connected to house fire

Firefighters make progress on Northern Minnesota blazes

In December 2012, they found out the neighboring business was closing and decided to expand — offering in-house bakery and cafe food, along with beer and wine. A friend opened a shop inside featuring arts and crafts made by local artists.

By 2015, Groundswell’s baker and general manager Megan Greulich competed on the Food Network’s “Christmas Cookie Challenge.”

“The national exposure helped expand our bakery, and Megan’s ugly Christmas sweater cookies became a fixture of our holiday season,” Groundswell says on its website.

In 2017, a car crashed through the front of the business. No one was hurt. “And, true to the spirit of the neighborhood, our neighbors showed up in waves, checking in on us and offering to help us clean up,” the website said.

Una persona o una familia, independientemente de su estatus migratorio, podría optar al voucher si no tiene vivienda o está a punto de perderla, y si gana menos del 50 por ciento de los ingresos medios del área ($77.650 dólares para una familia de cuatro miembros en la ciudad de Nueva York).

(Foto de Adi Talwar)

Este artículo se publicó originalmente en inglés el 16 de mayo. Traducido por Daniel Parra. Read the English version here.

Tras años de peticiones para crear un programa estatal de vales para pagar el alquiler destinado a personas sin hogar o en riesgo de quedarse sin hogar, la gobernadora Kathy Hochul anunció su compromiso de poner en marcha un programa piloto llamado Housing Access Voucher Program (Programa de Vouchers para Acceso a la Vivienda o HAVP por sus siglas en inglés).

Mientras que las propuestas del presupuesto del Senado y la Asamblea estatales buscaban $250 millones de dólares para el HAVP este año, el acuerdo de presupuesto del estado incluyó sólo $50 millones de dólares para cubrir el primer año de los cuatro años del programa, que iría desde el 1 de marzo de 2026 y terminaría el 1 de mayo de 2030. La financiación de los tres años restantes se negociará en futuros presupuestos, según informaron los funcionarios.

El senador estatal Brian Kavanagh y la asambleísta Linda Rosenthal —que lideran los comités de vivienda de sus respectivas cámaras— patrocinaron una versión del proyecto de ley HAVP durante los últimos años, que dio forma al lenguaje final incluido en el presupuesto.

Esto es lo que sabemos hasta ahora sobre el funcionamiento del HAVP y lo que aún está por determinarse.

¿Quién es elegible? 

Una persona o una familia, independientemente de su estatus migratorio, podría optar al vale si no tiene casa o está a punto de perderla. También deben tener unos ingresos no superiores al 50 por ciento de la renta media de área (AMI por sus siglas en inglés). En la ciudad de Nueva York, eso equivale a menos de 77.650 dólares para una familia de cuatro personas, según la definición del Departamento de Vivienda y Desarrollo Urbano de EE.UU.

Tanto la oficina de Rosenthal como la de Kavanagh dijeron que aún no se ha determinado cuánto dinero se destinará a la ciudad de Nueva York y a los demás condados, pero señalaron que la cantidad podría calcularse en función de la proporción de hogares con graves problemas de alquiler en cada zona.

“Se dará prioridad a los solicitantes que no tengan hogar”, dice el presupuesto que establece los parámetros del programa. El comisionado del Departamento de Vivienda y Renovación Comunitaria (HCR por sus siglas en inglés) podrá establecer otras prioridades según convenga.

En enero había más de 130.000 personas en el sistema de albergues de la ciudad de Nueva York, entre ellas unos 46.000 solicitantes de asilo e inmigrantes, según datos recogidos por City Limits.

¿Quién estará a cargo?

El HCR dirigirá el programa piloto y definirá los detalles y la documentación necesarios para poder aplicar. Rosenthal explicó que de los $50 millones de dólares disponibles, el 10 por ciento se destinará a gastos administrativos tales como divulgación, gastos de personal, diseño del programa y otros materiales.

HCR también coordinará con las agencias de vivienda pública y los administradores locales en el estado para distribuir los vales. En la ciudad, podría ser NYCHA y el Departamento de Vivienda y Desarrollo. 

City Limits pidió a las tres agencias más detalles sobre el programa piloto, pero no recibió información adicional más allá de la incluida en el presupuesto.

“Hablé con HPD, y están muy ansiosos por empezar”, dijo Rosenthal.

¿Cómo funcionará el programa de vales? 

Los titulares de vales deberán contribuir alrededor del 30 por ciento de los ingresos mensuales de su hogar para el alquiler, y el bono cubrirá el resto. Su valor se fijará entre el 90 por ciento y el 120 por ciento del alquiler de acuerdo con el mercado del área de alquiler. Los vales serán válidos mientras haya fondos disponibles, explicó Rosenthal.

El Consejo Asesor para la Reducción de la Pobreza Infantil (New York State Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council o CPRAC por sus siglas en inglés) estima que un programa de vales de este tipo podría ayudar a reducir la pobreza en todo el estado.

Al igual que los vales federales del programa de la sección 8, el administrador de HAVP emitirá los pagos directamente al propietario de la vivienda en el contrato. Aunque el voucher de la sección 8 se utilizó como modelo para el HAVP, tener uno de estos vales excluye tener el otro, por lo que las personas solo pueden recibir uno.

La ciudad de Nueva York también tiene su propio programa de vales llamado City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (CityFHEPS por sus siglas en inglés), para ayudar a las familias a salir de los refugios y acceder a una vivienda permanente.

En la actualidad, más de 55.000 hogares reciben vales CityFHEPS, y se prevé que la ciudad gaste $1.250 millones de dólares en el programa este año fiscal, una cantidad significativamente superior a los $50 millones asignados al HAVP estatal.

Hochul, que hasta este año se resistía a esta propuesta, dijo el mes pasado que el estado estaría “moderando el costo y manteniendo una vigilancia sobre el programa”.

“Esto tiene potencial para escalar mucho”, dijo a los periodistas en ese momento. 

CityFHEPS funciona de manera similar a sección 8, aunque ha sido criticado por la falta de consistencia en la realización de pagos —un problema que los legisladores estatales tienen presente para la puesta en marcha del nuevo programa.

“Creo que el HCR va a aprender las lecciones evidentes por la falta de delicadeza de la ciudad en la administración de CityFHEPS”, dijo Rosenthal. “Hay requisitos como desarrollar informes que no estaban en el proyecto de ley inicial que hemos insistido, para que podamos obtener más datos y adaptar. Ver dónde funciona, ver dónde necesita mejoras”.

¿Y ahora qué sigue?

Los vales deberán estar disponibles para su uso a partir del 1 de marzo de 2026.

El primer informe anual sobre la aplicación del programa piloto de vales estará disponible a partir del 1 de noviembre de 2026. En él se detallará la cantidad de fondos asignados a cada condado, el número de solicitantes de vales, el número de personas en lista de espera, el número de beneficiarios de vales y datos sobre la población sin hogar que recibe vales, entre otros aspectos. Se publicará un informe cada año hasta que finalice el programa piloto.

Para ponerse en contacto con el reportero de esta noticia, escriba a Daniel@citylimits.org. Para ponerse en contacto con la editora, escriba a Jeanmarie@citylimits.org.

The post Esto es lo que sabemos hasta ahora del nuevo programa de váucher de vivienda de Nueva York appeared first on City Limits.

By YURI KAGEYAMA and MATT OTT, Associated Press

Bond yields inched higher and Wall Street flipped from small gains to losses before the opening bell Thursday after rising U.S. debt sank markets on the previous day.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5% in premarket trading, while futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each slid 0.3%.

U.S. markets are also reacting to the passage early in the House on Thursday of the Republicans’ multitrillion-dollar spending bill, which aims to extend some $4.5 trillion in tax breaks from President Donald Trump’s first term in 2017 while adding others. The bill, which has stiffer requirements for Medicaid and other programs, is expected to undergo some changes when it gets to the Senate for a vote.

Related Articles

US filings for jobless aid, a proxy for layoffs, inch down modestly last week as uncertainty lingers

Small plane crashes into San Diego neighborhood, setting home and cars on fire

Rapper Kid Cudi is set to testify at the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs trial

Here’s what we know about the DC shooting where 2 staff members of the Israeli Embassy were killed

Today in History: May 22, strongest earthquake recorded strikes Chile

The legislation also includes a speedier rollback of production tax credits for clean electricity projects, which sent shares of solar companies tumbling. First Solar slid more than 7%, while Sunrun lost nearly one-third of its value. Energy technology company Enphase Energy fell 15%.

Health care stocks were also falling early Thursday after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it was immediately expanding its auditing of Medicare Advantage plans. UnitedHealth Group fell 3.5% and Humana was down 4.8%.

U.S. markets are coming off significant losses from a day earlier over concerns about the cost of the bill and the U.S.’s already mounting debt. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the tax provisions would increase federal deficits by $3.8 trillion over the decade.

Treasury yields ticked up on Thursday after spiking the day before when the U.S. government released the results for its latest auction of 20-year bonds. Such bonds help to pay government bills and the auction had to offer a yield of more than 5% to attract enough buyers.

The yield on the 10-year was at 4.62% early Thursday, up from 4.51% two days ago, a significant move in the bond market.

Rising yields for U.S. Treasury bonds are a canary in the coal mine, Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.

“The U.S. still has the biggest markets, the deepest liquidity, and the dollar’s inertia working in its favor. But even inertia can’t outrun compound interest and structural deficits forever,” he wrote.

The declining U.S. dollar weighed on Asian regional markets, according to some analysts, because some Asian nations have significant holdings in dollars. It also affects Asian exporters, such as Japanese automakers and electronics companies, by reducing the value of their overseas earnings when they are converted into yen.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar fell to 143.35 Japanese yen from 143.68 yen. It had been trading at 150 yen levels a year ago. The euro slid to $1.1312.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 shed 0.8% to finish at 36,985.87.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 1.2% to 23,544.31, while the Shanghai Composite edged down 0.2% to 3,380.19.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.5% to 8,348.70. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1.2% to 2,593.67.

In Europe at midday, France’s CAC 40 slipped 1.1%, while Germany’s DAX declined 1%. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.8%.

The price of oil fell on media reports that OPEC+ was considering another production increase. Benchmark U.S. crude lost 94 cents to $60.63 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 99 cents to $63.92 a barrel.

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Rapper Kid Cudi is set to testify Thursday at the New York sex trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs after one of the music mogul’s ex-aides finishes telling the jury about the threatening world he recalls encountering when he worked for Combs.

Cudi’s turn on the witness stand will come immediately after George Kaplan, a former personal assistant to Combs, finishes his testimony. A prosecutor said testimony by Cudi, whose legal name is Scott Mescudi, was not expected to be lengthy.

R&B singer Cassie testified last week that Combs threatened to blow up Cudi’s car and hurt him after he learned she was dating the rapper and actor.

Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and racketeering charges lodged against him after he was arrested in September at a Manhattan hotel.

The criminal federal probe of Combs began in November 2023, a day after Cassie sued him in Manhattan federal court, alleging years of sexual and physical abuse. The lawsuit was settled by Combs for $20 million the following day.

In four days of testimony last week, Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, said Combs subjected her to abuse through most of the nearly 11 years she was with him from 2007 through 2018.

She said she developed a relationship with Cudi in late 2011 that she ended within weeks after Combs learned about it when he looked at her phone during a drug-laced “freak-off” sexual performance, one of hundreds she said she endured over the years.

Related Articles

Here’s what we know about the DC shooting where 2 staff members of the Israeli Embassy were killed

Today in History: May 22, strongest earthquake recorded strikes Chile

2 staff members of Israeli Embassy killed in shooting near Jewish museum in DC

Survivors of clergy sexual abuse turn up calls for reforms from new pope’s American hometown

Lincoln’s blood-stained gloves from the night of his assassination among 144 artifacts on auction

Cassie’s mother, Regina Ventura, testified on Tuesday that she received an email from her daughter shortly before the holidays in 2011 saying Combs was going to release sex tapes of her and arrange for Cassie and Cudi to be physically harmed.

She said Combs then contacted her directly and demanded $20,000 for the money he’d spent on Cassie. Regina Ventura said she drained a home equity account to send the money, but Combs returned it days later.

Cudi is to follow Kaplan to the witness stand after the personal assistant to Combs from 2013 to 2015 finishes telling about what he experienced during 80- to 100-hour work weeks.

He testified Wednesday that he got a taste of what the job would be like in his first week when Combs sent him to a grocery store to get a gallon container of water and berated him when he returned with two half-gallon containers instead.

“He told me I did not bring him what he asked for. He was angry. He was very close to my face,” Kaplan said.

He said his job was threatened monthly by Combs. Cassie was asked, when she testified, if any Combs employee ever quit after witnessing Combs’ abuse. She said Kaplan did.